Sex in Advertising
Question: Does sex in advertising work? Why or why
not? Is it sexism? What are the moral implications? Could you please
shed some light on this topic for me?
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Misredemption of Coupons
Question: Could you please explain the concept of
misredemption of coupons?
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Comparative Advertising
Question: What is comparative advertising and is
it legal in Canada?
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Sex in Advertising
Question: Does sex in advertising work? Why or why
not? Is it sexism? What are the moral implications? Could you please
shed some light on this topic for me?
Sex in advertising has been a topic of discussion for many decades.
One of the earliest books I read on this topic was called "Subliminal
Seduction." It was written by Wilson Key and published in paperback
by Signet, 1972. Key saw sexual images hidden in many advertisements
(subliminal messages), although I must confess, I was never able to
see what he saw. Assuming that advertisers actually tried to hide subliminal
messages in advertisements, I am not convinced that anything below the
level of attention will have any impact on purchase behaviour, particularly
given the amount of stimulation consumers get from the marketing environment.
Anyway, sex in advertising has become much more explicit in recent
years, as some of the material in our text describes. Its effectiveness
is difficult to measure. Certainly, advertisements with clear sexual
themes have attention-getting power, and probably hold attention longer
on average than other ads. There is research that suggests that sex
in advertising enhances recall of the ad, but only when sex is appropriate
to the product category being advertised. Sex in advertising may also
elicit emotional responses from the audience, but marketers must be
very careful here. The persuasive message in an ad will have more impact
if the ad is viewed favourably, but will likely produce less impact
if the ad causes revulsion or negative feelings. Marketers must certainly
be careful when using anything in communications that might be viewed
as offensive. The topic of sex in advertising is one where more research
certainly needs to be done.
The Globe and Mail regularly reports interesting items related
to sex in advertising and other issues related to marketing communications.
I can recall two recent articles that I have clipped for my own class
discussions. Markham, Ontario-based Enbridge Services Inc. pulled a
television ad for gas fireplaces after several hundreds viewers complained
it was using gratuitous sex in its advertisement. (See John Heinzl,
"Gas fireplace retailer pulls cozy commercial," Globe and Mail,
October 26, 1999, p. B13.) A more recent one concerns a Unilever Canada
ad for Salon Selectives. Apparently the ad was shown in movie theatres
and did generate a few complaints, but when the company tried to get
permission to show it on television, many broadcasters objected. The
final result was that the offending scene (an amorous dog mounting a
guy's leg) was cut and replaced (with the dog simply biting the guy's
pantleg). This edited version will be shown in English Canada, but viewers
in Quebec will see the original ad. (See John Heinzl, "Amorous dog cut
from shampoo commercial," Globe and Mail, Februry 3, 2000, p.
B2.)
Dr. Herb MacKenzie
Misredemption of Coupons
Question: Could you please explain the concept of
misredemption of coupons?
Misredemption simply means that the coupons have been redeemed for
the face value, but the goods have not been sold. Manufacturers use
coupons for a number of reasons. One is to promote trial of new products;
another important reason is to gain trade support; a third is to get
price-sentitive customers to buy the product as they see greater value
when they can get the product at a price reduction. Unfortunately, coupons
are often "misredeemed." Some retailers accept coupons without the customer
actually making the purchase as they believe this builds a good relationship
with the customer, and the retailer gets a handling fee for processing
the coupon. Most coupons that are redeemed promise the retailer some
extra money for handling them. For example, you might get $0.30 off
a bag of chips. When the retailer returns the coupon to the manufacturer,
the retailer gets credit for $0.35.
In some extreme instances, where fraud was involved, printers have
printed thousands of extra coupons and sold them to retailers for a
small fee. The retailer then claimed the full redemption from the manufacturer
without actually selling any of the intended products. Manufacturers
are more careful now to ensure that retailers only redeem coupons in
quantities that can be related to the inventories that the retailer
purchases.
Dr. Herb MacKenzie
Comparative Advertising
Question: What is comparative advertising and is
it legal in Canada?
Comparative advertising can be a very effective method of advertising
if used properly. For example, when Subaru came to North America, it
showed an ad with Volvo and Subaru together. The Volvo was shown on
the top half of the ad with a crumpled front end resulting from impact
with a brick wall. The picture below showed a Subaru sitting inches
away from the brick wall. The ad copy read "Volvo Has Built A Reputation
For Surviving Accidents. Subaru Has Built A Reputation For Avoiding
Them."
With this ad, Subaru was quickly able to position itself in the North
American market based on the issue of safety. It was able to take advantage
of millions of dollars of Volvo advertising, gain consumer interest,
and promote the Subaru in the rest of the ad copy. It is one of the
most effective comparative ads ever.
Volvo and Subaru are examples of high-involvement products. There are
many
instances where products featured are low involvement products, at
least for some consumers. For example, tooth paste and soda pop manufacturers
often use comparative advertising. Tooth paste is generally a low-involvement
product, although it can be high involvement for some people. On the
other hand, soda pop is what is sometimes referred to as a "badge" product
because it has many characteristics of low-involvement products. However,
consumers often exhibit high loyalty because the product is very visible
and they believe the brand says something about them as individuals
("I am a Pepsi person"; or, "I am a Coke person"). In these instances,
comparative advertising is less effective, particularly if the consumer
sees the product as a low-involvement product because they will not
spend much time processing information from the ad.
Aside from helping to position products, comparative advertising make
the consumer's search process and alternative evaluation much easier.
Consumers want to compare products and comparative advertising helps
them do that.
However, market leaders almost never use comparative advertising because
why would they want to be compared to a "follower"? New market entrants
often use it to position themselves quickly (Volvo), and market followers
use it compare their products to market leaders on a product benefit
they think will be important to consumers.
Comparative advertising is legal in Canada and the United States but
illegal in other countries of the world. The issue of comparative advertising,
at least in the United States and Canada, is not an ethical one unless
a company makes a misleading claim or provides false information in
the ad. There are laws against libel or product disparagement and companies
must be careful not to say anything untrue about the competitor’s product.
In that case, the competitor could take legal action against the advertiser.
Dr. Herb MacKenzie
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